For applications in machine and plant construction and in automotive engineering and for building automation, there are a large number of relays or relay families. These include, for example, vehicle relays, multimode relays and performance relays with one or a plurality of changeover contacts. Modularly constructed relays as well as associated, likewise modularly constructed relay sockets have proven successful in industry, it being possible to plug the relays, depending on the application, onto a relevant relay socket corresponding thereto.
In many applications, it is necessary to electrically connect a plurality of relays to one another through their electric contacts in the relay socket. For this purpose there are what is known as electric cross connectors which can be plugged into holders of the relay sockets. Using these cross connectors, a plurality of electric potentials can be electrically connected to one another in parallel. The cross connector is, in this case, plugged into the holders of a plurality of adjacent relay sockets, one holder in each case still remaining free. Assembly of the cross connector on the relay socket takes place from above or laterally, so the cross connector is also easily visible when plugged in.
Electric cross connectors are used in the electric input of the relevant relay for looping through the coil voltage, in other words to electrically connect the coil contacts. In the electric output of the relays, a plurality of supply voltages, for example signal or actuator circuits, may be electrically connected. A visual control can take place here by means of LEDs.
A plurality of electric cross connectors are known from the prior art. Thus, U.S. Pat. No. 4,469,128 discloses an electric cross connection device for a pneumatic control system. Furthermore, DE 42 25 573 A1 discloses an electric connection module part for subassemblies of a modular automation apparatus. Moreover, DE 30 02 515 A1, U.S. Pat. No. 5,372,521, DE 33 12 002 C1 and DE 195 42 628 C1 disclose electric cross or series connectors with a comb-like configuration of the electric contact springs. Furthermore CH 580 342 A5 and EP 387 158 A1 in each case disclose a block-like electric connection for an electric apparatus.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,477,862 discloses an electric series pin plug for a bus circuit board or backplane of a control apparatus or mechanism. The electric series pin plug has a substantially U-shaped plastic material housing in cross-section with pin plugs received therein. The pin plugs are in this case received in two mutually parallel rows inside the housing.
EP 893 859 A1 discloses a comb connector for interfaces for relays. The comb connector in this case has a housing made of an electrically insulating material, and, embedded therein, an electric connection member, which projects at right angles from the flat housing with a large number of electric pin contacts. The comb connector has in each case, between two mutually directly adjacent pin contacts, a bridging portion with a predetermined breaking point on the electrically insulating material of the housing.
If a comb connector with a specific number of electric pin contacts is desired here, an adequately long comb connector is severed using a cutting tool at the corresponding predetermined breaking point. This free end can then be insulated with respect to wear and therefore electrically by a separate component configured as a covering cap. In order to guarantee a secure seat of the covering cap at the free end of the comb connector which has been cut to length, a remaining bridging portion of the housing and the covering cap have mutually corresponding latching elements.
One embodiment of a comb connector of this type has, for example, six electric pin contacts and has to be—if a smaller variant is desired—severed with the cutting tool. In the comb connector, a connection member between two electric pin contacts consists of the metal portion connecting the two electric pin contacts and the plastic material housing. In order to obtain a functioning smaller comb connector than the original one, in addition to the severing by the cutting tool, an additional part is necessary, namely the end covering cap, to completely electrically insulate the comb connector again. Moreover, the separated part of the comb connector can no longer be used and is therefore waste.
An object of the invention is to provide an improved electric cross connector for producing an electrically conductive connection. The latter should be suitable, in particular, for an electrically conductive connection of electric contacts of relay sockets.